Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli's five most shocking moments

After pictures emerged showing Liverpool man Mario Balotelli swearing at the Manchester United crowd following the Reds' loss at Anfield, we take a look at five of his most shocking moments.

A well known incendiary figure, the 24-year-old Italian has built a reputation for creating havoc wherever he goes, and our list includes issues with mangers and teammates - as well as an inability to deal with himself.

A fantastic player, there is no doubt that Balotelli offers great entertainment for watching fans, and the following list of incidents have been spoken about on many occasions.

1) - Swearing on TV

Following Manchester City’s victory over Stoke in the 2011 FA Cup Final, in which Balotelli was named man of the match, the forward took to the TV cameras to offer a very frank admission over the state of his season. Rather than speaking in the media trained manner of many professional footballers, Balotelli responded in a natural manner, saying: “My whole season was s**t. Can I say that?”

On live TV, you cannot say that!

2) - Throwing darts at youth players

An event that is so crazy that it even got its own song. Balotelli was caught throwing darts at youth players whilst they were training. He missed from his indoors vantage point, but was fined one week's wages, and has gone down in infamy as the Manchester City fans made a song up concerning his dart throwing prowess.

3) - Fighting with Roberto Mancini

Another training ground incident, this time involving a much more senior member of the City staff - Roberto Mancini. A reported training ground bust up saw Mancini and Balotelli grappling and throwing each other to the ground as the then-head coach tried to prove he was in charge.

One would think that would spell the end of them working together in the future, but the Mirror believes they could link up at Internazionale in the future.

4) - The ‘Fireworks’ event

This incident hardly needs explaining, as Balotelli set off fireworks inside his bathroom just days before scoring twice in a Manchester derby. Being pulled away from his house by the fire brigade, the event will live in infamy - and City forced Balotelli to front a campaign supporting fireworks safety the following Bonfire Night.

Probably the most famous of all Balotelli’s actions, the ‘Why Always Me?’ shirt has become the slogan by which the forward is known. Scoring against Manchester United, Balotelli lifted his City shirt to reveal the slogan underneath. No one is still entirely sure of the significance of the words, but the slogan seems to sum up the crazy misfit in a concise, and incredibly apt, manner.

Billy Hawkins

Billy is a freelance writer who contributes to various sites concerning football. Known to possess an obsession with statistics, Eastern European club sides, and Victorian football, he focuses upon the untapped potential of the Football League in the belief it is more enjoyable than the Premier League.